all about commUNITY :: inspiration :: accomplishment :: unity

Category: Alumni

Hilbert alumna Cindy Kazukiewicz
Gronachan ’77, together with her Class of 1974 Lakeshore Central School
classmates, organized a benefit in memory of former Lakeshore School
Superintendent George Johengen. Proceeds from the fundraiser will benefit
the Johengen Family Scholarship Fund at Hilbert. Mr. Johengen was a
former Hilbert Board of Trustees member, and a long time support of the
college.

As a recipient of the scholarship during her time at Hilbert, Cindy wanted to give current students the same opportunity she had. The total donations were over $3,000 and Cindy visited Hilbert to present the check to Hilbert President Dr. Michael Brophy. Thank you to Cindy and your LCS Class of ’74 classmates!

This past July, Hilbert alumnus Bill Haas ’08 represented Team USA in the International Triathlon Union’s Long Course World Triathlon Championships held in Fyn, Denmark. The event, which took Haas just over 8 hours to complete, included a 3 km swim (1.9 miles), 121.5 km bike (75.5 miles), and a 30 km run (18.7 miles) done in sequence.

Haas qualified for Team USA at the Long Distance Triathlon National Championships in Miami last November. Bill’s mother Karen, wife Bryana, and three children (Levi 7, Hannah 5, and Aliza 5) worked almost as hard cheering for 8 hours as he swam, biked, and ran. Haas’ family celebrated with a two week European vacation and, of course, a trip to Disneyland.

Two student organizations at Hilbert College, Enactus and Rotaract, held a dedication ceremony for “Mother Colette’s Crosswalk”. This project brought new flowers, plants, and landscaping to the area around Hilbert’s St. Clare Chapel.

Hilbert alum Tom Doody ’97 recently made a trip to China with his wife, Tracy. They made visits to both Shanghai and Beijing. During their adventures, they toured many Buddhist temples and places of historical significance, including Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City and the Great Wall. As you can see in the photos below, Tom brought Hilbert with him!

“It was an amazing experience,” Tom said. “The wall is remarkably steep in some places and a tremendously impressive structure. I was happy to represent Hilbert proudly!”

— Welcome new Admissions Counselor Juliet Talarico! Juliet is a 2015 graduate of Hilbert and earned a BA in Digital Media and Communications – concentration in Integrated Marketing. During her time as a student, Juliet was an Admissions Student Ambassador and very active in service learning. Her senior capstone project, was most notably with the City of Buffalo Animal Shelter, where she was the main driver behind a very successful “Dog Walk” adoption event and expo. Juliet is a native of Hamburg, NY and a graduate of Frontier High School.

— Makalia Haveron, FS was accepted into the Cybersecurity Graduate Program at Utica College, Utica, NY

— Harlie Decker, FS 2016 was hired as a Special Agent with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Georgia

— Dana Starr, FS 2015 was hired as a Crime Scene Investigator with the Greensboro Police Department, North Carolina

— Dr. Andrew Kolin, Professor of Political Science, has been appointed as a reviewer of two Academic Journals, Interface: a journal for and about social movements and Social Movement Studies.

— Hilbert English professor Herb Kauderer had a tanka titled “love among the stars” published in the August 2016 online version of Scifaikuest. In addition he has had ten poems published in October.

— “playing the reds” appeared in Not One of Us #56, which is the 30th Anniversary issue of the magazine. Professor Kauderer has appeared in the magazine occasionally since it was in single digits, with “Survivor” (1995) receiving Honorable Mention in the Year’s Best Fantasy & Horror.

A police officer in full riot gear who receives a “free hug” from a peace demonstrator amid the turbulent protesting in Charlotte, N.C. is Chris Frunzi, Hilbert College Class of 2006. The video, from Free Hugs Project, has been viewed 32 million times and growing!

Frunzi returned to Hamburg (on planned visit to surprise his parents, both Hilbert alums as well) and they all stopped by the Hilbert campus on Monday, Sept. 26. They visited with Coach deGrandpre (right), among others on campus during the day.

He was also recently featured in a Buffalo News article and on WKBW-TV.